Sinking
by RainingStarWars
Summary: Ben doesn't want them to sink... He loves them too much.


"Huh...?" Ben Solo mumbled, rolling over. He winced. Ow... The ground was so hard. He pressed an elbow into the dirt, pushing up into a partially sitting position. He leaned against that arm, blinking his sticky eyes to break away the glue-like substance holding them shut, and glanced around. His bare arms were lined with marks where they had been pressed against rocks and grass, and his old night shirt was torn in spots on the sleeves and bottom. His shorts didn't appear in much better condition. Where was he?

"He...Hello...?"

No response. The child appeared to be in a dark forest. The sky was gloomy and covered with clouds, so he was unable to see very well at all without any moonlight. It was cold, the trees looked dead, and there was very little grass. Not to mention, the little bit of grass growing appeared old, dry, and dead, too. Everything appeared to be dying... It also didn't look like the planet Daddy had taken them on vacation, but then again, Ben hadn't had the opportunity to explore yet. Still, it was dark, and he was afraid. He was all alone out here.

How did he even get out here?

There was only one way to find out. Ben struggled to stand up, but the ground was rough on his bare feet. Despite that, he was able to get to his feet. He shivered against the chilling air, wrapping his arms around his small frame. If only he had his blanket... Or, even better—If only he was back on the _Millennium Falcon_ with his parents and uncle.

Young Solo decided to explore. Hopefully, he could find his way back to Mommy and Daddy. He was certain that Han and Leia were very worried about him. Ben made his way through the woods slowly, practically tiptoeing just in case something big and scary was out there. Somewhere in the distance, a twig snapped, making him gasp loudly before he covered his mouth to hide his breathing. He stood there for several agonizing minutes, not daring to breathe. After a while, though, it was silent, and Ben decided that it was safe to continue.

He walked for several more minutes, never seeing a break in the forest. The moon never came out, either, so he had no idea whether or not he was going in circles. Just when it seemed like he would be stuck there forever, Ben saw a gap in the trees! He made no hesitation to run towards the exit at full speed. When he made it out, he was greeted by a large lake in the center of an opening. Trees surrounded the body of water, showing that he had not, unfortunately, made it out of the forest. Still, it was a start!

The strange thing was, even the life around the lake appeared to be dying. And it might have just been from the darkness, although Ben didn't think it was, but the lake looked like it was made of black ink rather than water. The boy stood there, feeling hopeless, when he suddenly heard a noise from across the lake. What was that? It sounded like a voice! Unfortunately, he couldn't see that far from the darkness, so he was left to only hear the faint sounds.

However, just like someone had directed it to help him, Ben saw the moon come out from behind the clouds! The distant orb was full that night, so it lit up the entire area with an eerie glow. Thankfully, it made it to where Ben could see the source of the noise he had heard a moment ago.

On the opposite side of the lake, two people seemed to be struggling with each other. From what he could tell, it looked like two grown men. One was clad in a dark suit of armor and a hood, and the other was wearing what appeared to be a set of Jedi robes! Ben then noticed a head of blond hair and a green lightsaber in the dull light, and it suddenly occurred to him _who_ exactly he was seeing.

"Uncle Luke?" he called in a small and confused voice, squinting through the night. Luke didn't appear to hear, though. They were a good distance apart, so that made sense. But who was that person he was fighting?

The two struggled for a few minutes, Luke's green blade clashing with the strange man's red one. It didn't look like either of them was going to win anytime soon, however. They both seemed to be equally matched, and if Uncle Luke was as powerful as Han always jokingly bragged about, then that other man must be pretty powerful, too! Force knows how much longer the battle went on after that, but eventually, Skywalker was able to knock his opponent to the ground and disarm him.

"Show yourself!" Ben heard his uncle shout at the fallen man, voice sounding hurt yet furious at the same time. That was odd... Luke never appeared angry or troubled. He was always very positive and calm; happy and relaxed. This stranger must have done something horrible to make him so upset. Ben could only wonder what he had done.

Though both figures were smaller due to their distance from the child, he could see the hooded man removed his cowl. He couldn't make out all of his features clearly, but he _could_ see a head of long, curly black hair and pale skin. Ben didn't know this man, but at the same time, he felt... Familiar, somehow. Wanting to get a closer look, he decided to travel around the lake. Close enough to see what was happening, but far enough as to not be noticed.

It didn't take long for him to reach a wilting patch of strange water plants. Ben hid himself in the leaves, peeking through and able to see Luke's face clearly. Skywalker's eyes had widened, and he was just... Staring at the mysterious man in what appeared to be horror and crushing heartache. Ben was confused by his reaction. Why wasn't he fighting? What happened?

"Ben?" he whispered in disbelief, squinting down at his fallen opponent. Solo's eyes widened.

"Uncle?" he said, standing up and stepping out of the shadows. Luke did not look up at him, however.

"Why...?" the Jedi mumbled, then spoke more clearly a moment later, "Why did you do this?" Ben froze in his tracks, looking up at him with a confused expression. What?

"Wh-What do you mean?" he stuttered, not understanding. What had he done? Did he do something wrong? Luke didn't answer, almost as if he hadn't heard his nephew's responses at all. "Uncle Luke, what did I do?" Ben asked again, taking another step forward. Still, Luke did not appear to hear. The blond-haired man lowered his lightsaber, deactivating it and slowly turning away from both Ben and the other man. Ben couldn't even read his uncle's expression anymore. It was unreadable.

Luke dropped his weapon into the dead grass, shoulders slouching. He didn't move. It was almost as if a dark energy was radiating from him, now. Not something evil, but something... Sad. Hopeless. What was happening? Ben was becoming afraid. "Uncle!" he called, but it didn't seem to phase anyone present. Without a warning, the man in the frightening armor hopped to his feet, running over to Ben's uncle and shoving him harshly! Luke stumbled for less than a moment before falling into the lake below! Ben screamed. " _Uncle Luke_!"

The dark-haired man rushed over and picked up his lightsaber before running at a quick pace into the woods and vanishing from sight. The thing that frightened Ben, however, was that the man had appeared to run _right through him_. It was as if he wasn't even standing there! The boy yelled frantically for his uncle, who was drowning in the inky water at this point. Luke waved his arms and tried to pull himself up, but it was almost like he just couldn't do it. Ben was about to run to his aid before two more figures came rushing from the forest.

Han Solo and Leia Organa-Solo pushed through the branches of a long-dead bush as they hurried to help their friend and family member.

" _Luke_!" Leia screamed, and at the same time, Han shouted, " _Kid_!" Ben could only stare in horror as his uncle was sinking before his very eyes.

" _Help him_!" the child squealed, tears streaming down his cheeks and staining his face. He sobbed. "Daddy, please, save him!" It was still as if no one could see or hear him, for Leia didn't even run over to comfort her son. Han ran over to Luke, throwing out his hand to grab Luke's.

"Luke, grab my hand!" he yelled, reaching closer to the sinking blond. Luke tried to grip onto his brother-in-law's hand, but he went under once again. Nothing but large ripples for a moment... But then he was back above! Once again, Skywalker tried to grab Han's hand. He caught his fingers, but his own hands were so wet that he slipped right back under.

This went on for what felt like years. Leia was sobbing in the background, crying out pleas to the Force that her brother would live. Eventually, Luke's frantic expression grew tired and emotionless. It almost looked like he just didn't care anymore. His waving arms slowed down until they were no longer keeping him afloat, and his head leaned back in defeat. Han looked terrified.

Luke was giving up!

"Luke, don't give up!" Han cried out, "Come on, kid, just grab my hand! _Please_." Luke made no attempt to follow his instructions.

"What's the point, Han? It's hopeless!"

"It's not hopeless! Come on, Luke! We can still do this!"

"I'm sorry..." He bobbed up and down in the water for a moment, and then he went under. Ben screamed in unison with his parents.

" _Uncle_!"

" _Luke_!"

" _Kid_!"

Han shoved his hand into the lake, trying to grab his friend's hand or _something_. However, he could make no successful attempt. And within a minute, the Corellian was wobbling, and he fell in, too. There was a splash, and he was gone. No frantically trying to swim to the surface or anything. He was just _gone_. Ben was sobbing and screaming so loudly that any living beings nearby would be awoken.

" _Daddy, Uncle Luke, NO_!"

Leia ran over, sobbing and screaming for her husband and brother. She didn't reach into the water, for she knew they were already gone, but yet she still screamed. Ben grabbed his hair, pulling on the black curls until it caused him unimaginable pain. He backed away, shaking his head frantically. "No, no, no, NO!" he yelled over and over, hitting himself on the head. "It's a dream... It has to be a dream! _Daddy, Uncle, PLEASE_!"

Suddenly, without any prior warning, the boy slipped on a muddy spot, and screamed as he fell back and hit the water with a loud _splash_!

* * *

Ben gasped as he woke up in bed, breathing heavily and drenched in sweat. Moonlight shined in through his bedroom window, illuminating the room in a dull glow. He looked around frantically, making sure that he was alive and that it had all been a dream, before throwing his head into his knees and sobbing. He was safe... Uncle Luke and Daddy were safe. It was just a bad dream.

No... A nightmare. A horrible, horrible nightmare.

Ben stayed like that for a moment, still unable to calm down. He couldn't stop crying. What could he do? He needed to relax. He needed to talk to someone! He pulled his stuffed wookie that Han had bought him close to his chest, breathing into its soft fur. After a moment of this, he suddenly got an idea.

 _Friend?_ he thought intensely, eyes squeezed shut. _Friend, are you there?_ It was quiet for a moment, but then, the deep voice he had come to rely on whispered in response.

 _Yes, Ben? Whatever seems to be the matter, dear boy?_ Ben smiled a little at the voice belonging to the one he simply called "friend." The man, or whatever he was, would never tell him his real name or where he came from, but he simply stated that he was a friend. Therefore, Ben addressed him as such. The being would talk to him sometimes when he was alone, and he would bring comfort whenever he needed it. However, he had only one condition: That Ben _never_ speak of him to anyone. Especially not Luke. The child didn't like keeping secrets... But he decided that just one was all right.

 _I had a scary dream..._ he whimpered mentally, clinging to his doll. His friend made a little "hmm" sound.

 _Yes, I know. I'm sorry, child._

 _What does it mean? You and Uncle Luke both say dreams are important._

 _They are, indeed. Good that you remember. But are you sure you want to know what that dream meant? I'm not sure that you will like it very much._

Ben nodded heavily. _Yes, I wanna know. Why was Uncle sinking? Why did Daddy sink? Who was Uncle Luke fighting?_ Silence for a moment... But the voice spoke again. However, the way he sounded almost made Ben a little scared. Sometimes his friend did that... Sometimes he sounded scary.

 _Your uncle was sinking because of_ _ **you**_ _, Ben._

The young Solo's eyes widened in fear, his hands starting to tremble. _Wh-What? Why?! I didn't mean to make him sink!_ Tears were welling up in his eyes once again.

 _Because you disappointed him, Ben. You hurt him. You weren't good enough._

 _Why am I not good enough?_

 _Because you are_ _ **weak**_ _. And when you made your uncle sink, your father began to sink, too. By making them sink, you made your mother sad and lonely. You failed them, boy._ Ben sobbed again, throwing off his covers and hiding his face in his hands. No! He didn't want Han and Luke to sink! He loved them! And he didn't want Leia to be sad, either!

 _I don't wanna be weak! I wanna be good enough!_ He then crawled out of bed, falling on his knees like he was begging. _**Please**_ _,_ he pleaded, _Please, teach me to be strong! I wanna make Uncle Luke proud of me! I wanna make Daddy proud of me! Please, help me, friend!_

Once again, there was silence. Nothing was said for a moment, but eventually, Ben's friend spoke once again. _All right,_ he said, _I will train you, child. Under one condition: You must do everything exactly as I say, even if you don't agree with it. And as before, you are not to speak of this to anyone._

 _Oh, thank you, friend!_ Ben mentally cried, a watery smile coming across his face. _Thank you so much!_

 _You are welcome... Now, I do believe it has grown very late. You should get some rest. I have other matters to attend to, so I must be on my way._

 _Okay... Good night._

 _Good night, young Solo._

After a few seconds, when Ben didn't hear anything else, he stood up and looked out of his window. He stared at the glowing full moon. It looked quite similar to the moon in his dream... He shuddered. Despite the comfort of his friend, Ben still couldn't help but worry for his father and uncle. An image of Luke's face going underneath the water flashed through his mind, and the dark-haired boy was suddenly bursting through his door and running downstairs at full speed!

In the family room, Han, Luke, and Leia were all up late talking. Luke had come to visit them earlier, and he still hadn't left yet. They did that, sometimes. Staying up late into the night and just talking to one another. It was relaxing, and they all enjoyed it. However, their happy chat was cut short when Ben suddenly came flying into the room.

"Ben?" Leia said, raising her eyebrows in confusion. The small boy ran immediately to his uncle, landing in his arms and giving him the world's biggest hug with tear-stained cheeks.

Luke made an "oof!" sound when they came into contact, and he could only look down at his nephew in confusion.

"Whatever is the matter, Ben?" he asked, rubbing Ben's back soothingly. He glanced at Han, baffled. The brunet shrugged, watching his son with concern.

"Promise you won't sink because of me!" Ben cried, gripping onto the blond's robes tightly.

"What?"

"Promise me you won't sink!"

Luke was lost, but he told the child what he wanted to hear. He probably had a nightmare. "Um... No, Ben, I won't sink. I promise." Han and Leia looked at each other with wide eyes, not understanding still. They also assumed he had just had a bad dream. When he continued to weep, Luke's shoulders relaxed, and he held Ben close to him.

"I won't sink. I promise you."

* * *

 **A/N: In case anyone didn't catch it. The dream is symbolic for Luke losing hope after Ben falls to the Dark Side, and then Han losing hope after him. The voice who Ben calls friend is Snoke, but I think that one was obvious.**

 **Anyway, I'm so sorry.**


End file.
